Carder the Chemist:
Creating the Alluring Colors of Steuben Glass

October 21, 2025
63rd Annual Seminar on Glass, The Corning Museum of Glass (online)

Frederick Carder (1863–1963) is renowned as the creative and scientific genius responsible for Steuben Glass Works' considerable artistic output between 1903 and 1932. Carder had a hand in almost every aspect of the company: he created batch formulas, designed objects, hired employees, and supervised production. With Carder at the helm, Steuben emerged as a prominent producer of twentieth-century art glass. This lecture focuses on Carder’s role in creating the company’s prolific and alluring range of colors. An exploration of archival material at the Rakow Research Library, in tandem with a significant group of glass samples at The Corning Museum of Glass, showcases Carder's work as a chemist and his noteworthy and lasting contributions to the field of American glass.